A Budding Relationship
by SadistiKitteh
Summary: Yugi wants to grow a garden on the roof of his apartment. His landlord allows this on one condition: Yugi has to be supervised for every trip to the roof he makes. Either by the landlord or the new security guard, Malik. A different take on the Flower Shop AU. Crosshipping (Yugi/Yami Marik)


Yugi pulled a trolley cart through the doors of his apartment building with some difficulty. He had finally gotten permission with the landlord to set up a garden on the rooftop and was bringing in the pots and wood slats he had put in storage. It was a small hobby that he nurtured and it grew close to an obsession. But he realized after a while that the plants cluttered his balcony and he couldn't bear to part with any of the plants he cared for.

So, after researching all he needed to know, including any laws involving rooftop gardens in his city, he'd gone to the landlord. Despite how much he reassured them, they were still uneasy about a tenant using the rooftop freely.

That brought him to his final task, and the only way his landlord agreed to this at all; having the landlord themselves or a security guard accompany him to the roof. Yugi didn't want to bother his busy landlord, so he decided the security guard was the better choice. Yugi figured he could get to know the guard, having not met them before. He paused at the security door and knocked, waiting politely for someone to answer.

The man that answered seemed to tower over him, his violet eyes giving him a once over before flicking to the trolley. "So, you're the gardener I have to babysit, huh?" the man asked dryly.

Yugi nodded, looking over the guard. He could tell the man was well built and felt somewhat intimidated. He held out his hand for the guard to shake. "Ah, I might as well tell you my name; we'll be seeing each other quite a bit! I'm Yugi."

The guard paused a moment, before taking the hand offered and shaking it firmly. "I'm Malik,"

He stepped back a moment to grab a radio from somewhere, before stepping out of the room and closing the door behind him. Yugi grunted a little as he got the trolley moving again, pulling it behind him as he followed Malik to the elevator. "We'll need to make a stop at my floor; I still need to pick up a couple tools."

Malik nodded, pressing the button to call the elevator down and crossing his arms as they waited. Yugi took the time to glance Malik's way. Despite being intimidating at first, Yugi couldn't deny Malik was attractive. He could compare the way his hair was styled to a field of wheat, or even a sunflower. Malik cleared his throat and Yugi looked up again to see Malik was holding the elevator open for him to get the trolley inside. He quickly apologized before pulling it inside the elevator car.

Yugi momentarily wondered if Malik was just used to people eyeing him up and felt embarrassed. He pressed the button to his floor and kept his eyes on the stacked pots. 'Not the greatest impression you're giving, Yugi,' he thought.

Once they reached his floor, Yugi pushed the trolley out into the hall and fished out his apartment keys, looking up briefly when Malik reached to grab the handle. Malik just shrugged. "You can get out your keys on the way; I'll pull this a while."

Yugi couldn't help a small smile, thanking Malik before walking to his apartment. He opened the door and walked inside, holding the door open to let Malik through. "You can come in, if you like," Yugi did a brief sweep of his apartment to make sure it was presentable before looking back at Malik, "Do you mind helping me carry a couple boxes that won't fit on the trolley?"

Malik, however, was staring openly at the window where a couple herb plants were sitting, and the greenery he could see out on the balcony. He looked at Yugi and nodded, gently pushing the trolley in the room. Once he recovered from the sight, he closed the door behind him and watched as Yugi busied himself around the room.

Malik wanted to make a joke about Yugi growing his own flower shop on the balcony, but was too taken in with just how many plants and flowers were scattered around the apartment. Around the apartment, there was a faint smell of damp soil underneath a very prominent smell of herbs. He had expected Yugi to be one of those people who saw something online and just decided they'd copy it, but it was clear now Yugi had experience with plants.

"It's nice, isn't it?"

Malik's attention snapped back to Yugi, who was carrying a box filled with herbs, a couple flowers and what looked like a small bush already set on the trolley. Malik gave Yugi a small shrug, moving back to pull the trolley out of the room again once he opened the door.

"I started growing some flowers just to brighten my balcony at first, but then I wanted to try growing other plants and I got carried away," Yugi continued, a light blush blooming on his cheeks, "It was just something to help relax after work."

Yugi held out the box of flowers, and Malik balanced it carefully on one hand while Yugi locked up his apartment. Malik didn't fail to notice the blush darken on Yugi's cheeks, even as he tried to hide his face.

Malik wondered if Yugi was embarrassed or thought he was bothered by Yugi's love for his plants. That was anything but what he thought; Malik felt Yugi had a right to brag, he had a flourishing garden on his balcony where most could barely keep a cactus alive.

Yugi pressed the elevator's button this time, and Malik moved the trolley to push it inside, just in time to push on the elevator door so Yugi could climb inside as well. Once they reached the top floor, Malik paused at the door that lead to the roof. "Just a few stairs, but we should leave this door open while we carry this stuff up," Malik pulled his ring of keys off his belt and went to unlock the door, "We can use one of the heavy pots, right?"

Yugi nodded when Malik glanced over at him, grabbing one of the heavier pots with a grunt as Malik held open the door. With Malik's help, they were able to quickly get Yugi's supplies and plants up to the roof. Yugi got to work on the setup, but could feel Malik's eyes on him as he worked. Yugi supposed he'd get used to it, it was mostly for his safety after all. Part of him, however, felt that Malik could at least offer his help.

After a couple of breaks to bandage his fingers after handling the chicken wire, he stood back to admire his work. He stole a glance at Malik, a smile growing on his face seeing even he was admiring Yugi's handiwork. Yugi turned to walk to Malik, excited to see someone else appreciate his work. "I'll probably bring up a couple more to fill it out more before the sun sets. I guess I'll see you then?"

Malik's lips twitched upward and he nodded, holding open the door to let Yugi through. He gave one last look to the new garden before closing the door behind him. Malik would never voice it, but he looked forward to seeing the roof become a lush garden.

* * *

It hadn't taken long for Malik to fall into a pattern with Yugi's trips to the roof. He hadn't many other duties, but even when they did come up Yugi waited for him. He guessed Yugi just preferred his presence, though he appreciated the break from his usual office work to watch Yugi tend to his plants. The past month had made his work much more enjoyable.

So, when Yugi didn't show up that morning to tend to his garden, Malik decided to check in on Yugi himself. He took the elevator to Yugi's floor and headed to the familiar door. He knocked at the door a little harder than necessary and cringed realizing how forceful it sounded.

Yugi opened the door and Malik could see what had kept him. He looked sick, and was holding a mug of what smelled like chamomile tea. "Malik? What do you need?"

"Ah...I suppose it can wait if you're sick-"

"Oh, right! The garden! Just let me get dressed."

Yugi was about to close the door, but Malik grabbed it before he could. Yugi looked up at Malik in both shock and confusion. Malik hesitated when he realized what he was about to do; it wasn't his job to care for Yugi's health. Regardless of that thought, he spoke. "Let me water them, it'll be faster and you won't get sicker that way."

Yugi continued to look at Malik a moment, then chuckled quietly. "Fair enough. Give me a moment."

Yugi slipped away from the door and Malik let go of it. He told himself he was only concerned because he wasn't sure how ill Yugi felt; he wasn't exactly prepared for a medical emergency beyond what was in the First Aid kit in his office.

Malik heard Yugi filling up the watering can, likely from his kitchen, before Yugi reappeared. He planted the handle in Malik's hand, giving him a small smile. "You can keep this one, I have a couple of these to spare."

A warmth bloomed inside Malik from that one gesture, and he gave Yugi a nod and turned away before he could think about it more.

Yugi watched Malik leave curiously, hoping that putting his plant's care in Malik's hands wasn't a mistake. He knew Malik had watched him work, and it was a pattern they both had gotten used to. But he never had trusted anyone to care for his plants, and he knew what he left up on the roof still needed a lot of attention.

Yugi closed the door behind him, coughing into his arm as he walked back to his couch.

* * *

When Yugi was well enough to visit the roof himself, he felt himself relax seeing the leaves of every plant were happily soaking in sunlight. Malik flashed Yugi a proud smile before leaning back in his spot. Yugi greeted his plants quietly, a note of appreciation seeded in his voice.

"I did speak to them as well, if you're wondering," Yugi looked up at Malik and he shrugged, "You did it every time we've been up here, I guessed it was part of it somehow."

Yugi blinked. He didn't think Malik had been paying that much attention, a blush blooming across his face at the thought that Malik may have heard him. "It's supposed to, yeah. Thank you, Malik."

Malik shrugged again, and Yugi continued caring for his plants. Yugi had been ill for a little more than week, and was thankful that Malik had done his best to care for the plants. He wanted to show just how much he appreciated the effort. "What do you think? Can you give me ideas?" Yugi asked one of the plants, smiling a bit at how silly he was being.

Until he turned to tend to the next plant; a lively sprig of thyme that needed pruning.

Yugi had taken to giving his neighbours and co-workers herb bouquets from what he'd cut off his herb plants, not wanting the sprigs he harvested going to waste. He thought about the sprigs he had stashed at home as he grabbed his pruning shears, wondering if they could be enough to make one for Malik.

Once he was finished tending to the plants, he packed away his tools and walked over to Malik. "What kind of meals do you like?"

Malik blinked, a confused expression on his face. "Ah...why?"

"I wanted to thank you, so... ah..."

"Are you offering me dinner, Yugi?" Malik asked with a grin, then shrugged, "I'm vegetarian so anything like that is fine."

Yugi was about to correct him, but it covered his actual intentions perfectly. He didn't see anything wrong with getting lunch with Malik, it gave him an opportunity to get to know him better as well. "Yeah! Uh, you'd know a place better than I would though."

"Oh, going _out_ are we?"

"Well, yeah! I'm a little tired of being stuck inside, you know?"

"Understandable," Malik chuckled, offering Yugi a softer smile that made Yugi's heart beat a little faster, "We could go after you water your plants this afternoon, I know a place."

* * *

Malik was stumped by his growing feelings. It had been a couple weeks since he'd gone out for lunch with Yugi, and they'd occasionally gone out together for lunches since then. He thought Yugi was a friend, as odd as the circumstances were for them.

But new feelings started branching out, feelings rooting deeper in his heart and growing out of his control. When Yugi would smile at him, his breath felt caught in his chest. He admired how Yugi tended to his plants and would wonder if his touch would be just as gentle if...

Malik shook the thought from his head when he heard a knock at his office door. He looked at the clock, realizing it was close to the end of his shift. How long had he been lost in his thoughts? Malik scowled at his lap, lecturing himself for spacing out and stood to open the door.

His scowl melted away seeing Yugi, but it wasn't Yugi he was looking at.

Yugi was holding a bouquet of herbs, each bundle carefully arranged and wrapped in baking paper. The bouquet was held together with twine, which Yugi fiddled with as he explained what each of the herbs were. Malik's cheeks felt uncomfortably warm, and he looked at Yugi's face to see he wasn't the only one flushed.

"I-I'm rambling, umm... I think these will be good for roasting vegetables, o-or whatever you feel like using them for. Like I said, there's care instructions and what they can be used in. I meant to give you these earlier, but I wanted to make sure they were all fresh."

Yugi held out the bouquet towards Malik. Malik gently took it, as if he was afraid it would fall apart in his hands. The smell of rosemary and dill hit him first; he couldn't help but take a moment to smell the bouquet.

Malik looked up at Yugi, his eyes meeting Yugi's hopeful gaze. He smiled warmly, turning to set the bouquet on the desk. He couldn't think of anything to say, so he cupped Yugi's cheeks in his hands and planted a kiss on Yugi's forehead.

Malik could feel Yugi's cheeks grow hot in his palms, and moved back; realizing that he'd been too forward with his appreciation. "Th-Thank you...Yugi." Malik said, trying to mask his embarrassment, "I'll definitely use them tonight."

A small, eager smile graced Yugi's lips, and Malik felt a tingling sensation shoot down his body. Did Yugi feel similar to how he felt? Yugi touched his cheek and glanced shyly at his feet. "I'm glad you like them, Malik."

Yugi looked up at Malik after a moment, and Malik felt his affection for Yugi bloom in his heart. "Well, I'll see you tomorrow."

Malik nodded dumbly, waving as Yugi left. "Yeah, tomorrow."

* * *

Yugi gave Malik more bouquets since then, each one a little more decorated than the last. He'd gotten plenty of thanks for his bouquets from other people, but Malik's reaction felt different. That wasn't even when thinking of the leftovers he'd brought for Yugi to try. He'd used his own herbs to cook his meals many times, but it was the first time he'd been given a chance to taste someone else's food.

Malik always seemed to appreciate the praise for the meals he brought Yugi to try, and it didn't surprise him when he continued to bring leftovers over.

Over the following weeks, he started bringing in more plants for the roof garden; another wood slat to make into a wall of flowers, bushels of lavender, and a small citrus tree. He also moved a couple larger plants from his balcony that were no longer flourishing there. He'd gotten compliments from people in the adjacent apartments, and even some of his neighbours about his garden.

But Yugi didn't feel like it was just his garden anymore; Malik had helped carrying pots that were too heavy and tended to the plants while he was sick or too busy at work to do so himself. The thought that this garden was something they both cared for made Yugi's cheeks rosy in colour.

Since Malik's reaction to the first bouquet, Malik had withdrawn most affections. Yugi had silently hoped Malik would show him more of these affections. But now, as he finished watering his plants out on the balcony, he worried that maybe he'd read too much into what happened. Maybe Malik didn't have feelings for him, or he felt embarrassed openly showing his gratitude that way.

A familiar hard knock on his apartment door pulled him out of his thoughts, and Yugi couldn't help a smile as he got up to open it.

Malik looked like he was trying to hide his face behind his bangs, as he held out a small lavender painted pot filled with a small bushel of petunias. The petals were red bordered around black, with a splash of yellow in the center of it all. Yugi just stared at them, his rosy cheeks blooming into the colour of the petunia's petals.

"I saw these and...thought of you," Malik murmured, "I thought you could put them on your balcony."

Yugi briefly wondered if this was the feeling Malik had when Yugi had given him the bouquet. His heart beat hard in his chest, and his stomach felt like butterflies were let loose inside. As he took the flowers, he felt his own feelings for Malik blossom in his heart.

His hair. He got the flowers because it looked like his hair.

Yugi looked up at Malik, eyes glistening from the overwhelming feelings growing inside him. As he put a hand on Malik's cheek, he could feel the warmth and watched the colour dusting them grow darker. Yugi realized then Malik had always felt the same; he felt as close to Yugi as Yugi did to Malik.

Yugi held the pot close to his chest as he got on his tip toes to kiss Malik's cheek. Only then did Malik look up enough to see his eyes. Wide, confused and yet hopeful. Yugi's smile grew and he did the only thing he could think to show how he felt without ruining the flowers; he moved his hand from Malik's face to gently take one of Malik's hands.

"They're beautiful, Malik. I love them. I'll go put them there right now, just wait here."

Yugi forced himself to let go of Malik's hand after squeezing it once, then quickly turned into his apartment. He realized, after a couple steps toward the balcony, that he wanted to see those flowers every time he came home. He smiled warmly as he planted the flowers on a shelf, moving a couple other trinkets to make room. He made sure he would be able to see them by looking towards the door again.

He could see Malik watching him, and a warmth rooted in his chest seeing the look on Malik's face. He walked back over to Malik and took both his hands. "Now I can see them every day."

Yugi couldn't help but smile seeing Malik look away from him, almost as if shy. It was just as endearing to him as it was when he'd compliment his cooking.

"I wanted to also invite you to come to my place for dinner," Malik managed to look up then, a small smirk replacing the shy smile now, "You know, since you like my leftovers so much."

Yugi's heart fluttered in his chest, and found himself nodding eagerly. "I'd love to. Ah, If you need more herbs, I have plenty to share."

Malik's smirk softened into a smile, and Yugi swore his breath was stolen away when Malik leaned over to kiss Yugi's forehead. "I have enough herbs, Yugi. All I need is you."

Yugi couldn't help a small laugh at the compliment, and was pleased at the look on Malik's face when he surprised Malik with a peck on the lips in return. Yugi collected his keys and phone, locking his apartment with one last loving glance at his new flowers. And, on the way to Malik's home, they talked about what kind of vegetables they could try to grow in their garden.


End file.
